Ball-point writing instrument



Filed Sept. 17, 1945 few@ r;

fw mim Patented Sept. 9,1947

BALL-POINT WRITING INSTRUMENT Robert W. Randolph, Milton, Wis., assigner to The Parker Pen Company, Janesville, Wis., a i corporation oi Wisconsin Application September 17, 1945, Serial No. 616,852 (ci. 12o-49) g 17 Claims.

. -1 This invention relates to writing instruments of the kind wherein the writing point is retractable into the holder and, alternately, propellable forwardly into writing position; and it has to do iication:

Fig. 1 is anelevational view of a ball-pointwriting instrument constructed in accordance with the present invention;

the ball point and propel-repel mechanism in the retracted or repelled position; and

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view similar to Fig. 2 but showing the ball point and propels` more particularly with ball-point writing instrul 5 repel mechanism in the propelled or projected p0- ments of the type which comprises a. self-consition. .tained, replaceable ball-and-cartridge mounted The instrument shown comprises a, hollow, in an elongate housing in which it is recprocable elongate holder I which includes a tapered metal lengthwise to propel and retract the writing point. tip member 2, a secondary or intermediate tip The primary object is to provide an instrument member 3, which may be made of plastic maof the above-indicated character which is rugged terial, a tubular barrel 4 which may likewise be and reliable and at the same time simple to opof plastic material and a cap member 5 of plaserate and economical to manufacture. tic material. Tip member 2 is threaded into sec- To that end the invention contemplates a conondary tip member 3, which in turn is threaded struction wherein the writing point is propelled l5 into the front end of barrel 4. The cap memberl and retracted by means of a linger-operated le-` 5 has a tubular portion 5a which is telescoped ver arm which extends to the exterior of the into and cemented in the back end of the bore holder and which, preferably but not necessarily, of barrel 4. i serves as a pocket clip when the writing point is Encased within the holder is a self-contained retracted. replaceable balland-cartridge unit 6 comprising According to the preferred practice the invent .a tubular ink-reservoir portion 'I having an intion is characterized by the provision of a cam tegralink-feed tube 8, into the front end of which which is rotatable by the aforementioned lever is inserted a tubular member 9 which is suitably arm to propel the writing point forwardly and formed at its front end to receive and seat a which inherently serves as a lock to positively ball point I0. The back end of reservoir l is hold the writing point in its forwardmost posiclosed by a plug II having a vent hole I2. Plug tion until intentionally released. II serves as an anchor for a collapsible rubber An important feature of the invention, when sac I3 which serves to .maintain at least atmosso carried out that the lever arm serves also as pheric pressure on the ink in the reservoir l and a pocket clip, is that said lever arm can be made where the ink is fed from the reservoir toward as strong and rigid as desired because it does not the ball point I0. The sac I3 also functions as depend upon its own resiliency to render it eieca seal to preventink within reservoir l from tive as a pocket clip-the necessary spring presleaking out through vent hole I2. sure being provided by the spring which func- The ball-and-cartridge unit B is reciprocable tions to retract the writing point. 35 lengthwise within the holder and is continuously Another feature, according to the preferred urged backwardly toward its retracted position by practice of the invention, resides ina mechania coll spring I4. In Fig. 2 the ball-and-cartridge cal construction which enables the operating leunit is shown in its retracted position-the ballver arm to recede into the holder, where it is out point pen being retracted into the bore of tip of the way, when the instrument is adjusted for 40 member 2.v use; that is to say, when the writing point is in The back end of unit 6 is seated in a recess in its forward position. member I5 which together with a ilexible cup I6 Still another feature of the invention, which is forms the piston of a dashpot the purpose of highly desirable but not indispensable, resides in which is to prevent too rapid retraction of unit the provision of a simple dashpot arrangement 6. 'Ih'readed into member I5 is an axially exwhich serves to prevent excessively abrupt retractending `piston rod Il which is slidable in a guide tion and thus avoids the audible-click which bushing I8 threaded into the extension 5a and otherwise often would occur when the lever arm is provided with a head I9. The head I9 is slidis returned to the retracted position. ably movable lengthwise of the holder I under In the drawing which accompanies this specithe influence oi a cam 20 rotatably mounted on a pivot 2l and having an integral lever arm 22 v extending to the` exterior of the holder and so Fig. 2 iS a longitudinal sectional view showing 55 formed that wh'en element Ii is in its-retracted position, as shown in Fig. 2, the lever arm lies generally parallel, lengthwise, to the holder and points in the general direction of the front end of the holder.

Cam is disposed in a narrow longitudinally extending slot 23 which is so formed that it will receive all except the tip end 22a of lever arm 5 22 -when said lever arm is moved to the position depicted in Flg. 3 wherein the ball-and-cartridge unit 4 is in its forwardmost position.

It will be seen from the drawings that the cam 20 is formed with an edge portion 20a, located 10 relatively close to the pivot 2|, an arcuate edge portion 20h struck on a radius about the pivot 2| at a distance somewhat greater than the distance of the edge portion 20a from the pivot 2|, and an edge portion 20c, considerably further from the 15 pivot 2| than the edge portion`2||a but somewhat closer than the edge portion 20h. A toe 20d is formed at the junction of the edge portions 20a and 2Gb and a heel 2|le is formed at th'e junction of the edge portions 20h and 20c.

Lever arm 22 is manually rotatable from the position in which it is shown in Fig. 2 to the other extreme position depicted in Fig. 3 and upon being so moved it rotates cam 20 about pivot 2| and causes the toe 20d to be rotated forwardly 25 and across the upper surface of the head I9 to depress the latter and thus cause a forward movement of the entire plunger assembly comprising members I5, I6, and i9 which, in turn,

produces a like forward movement -of ball-and- 30 cartridge unit 6. When th'e toe 20d is in a position to the right (as viewed in Fig. 2) of a plane through .the-pivot 2| and axially of the holder (or what may be termed "dead center") the ency for snap action to occur as soon as the toe of cam 20 passes dead center. This is somewhat objectionable because of the clicking noise which is produced when the end oi' the lever arm strikes the holder and also because of the resultant tendency to mar th'e holder. The aforementioned snap action is largely or wholly avoided as a result of the damping or cushioning'eifect of the dashpot. v

By telescoping cap l into barrel 4 and mounting cam 2l in said cap member the hole for pivot pin 2| is concealed without resort to pluggingwhich is a factor to be considered in any product where appearance is such an important factor.

To remove and replace the ball-and-cartridge unit it is necessary only to unscrew the intermediate tip member 3 from the front end of barrel 4 whereupon th'e unit can easily be withdrawn. At the same time Ythe piston and piston rod com- 0 prising elements I5, IB and l1 can be withdrawn from the barrel since rod |1 is made to slidably fit the bore of member I9.

I claim:

1. A writing instrument comprising a holder having an open forward end, a unit slidably mounted in said holder and having a writing point at its forward end adapted to be projected and retracted through the open forward end of said holder, and actuating means for projecting and retracting said unit including a lever mounted for manual pivotal movement relative to said -holder andmeans operatively interposed between said lever and said unit and actuated by movement of said lever about its pivot to proplunger assembly 30, under the influence of the ject and retract said unit respectively.

spring I4, applies a force on the cam y2i), tending to rotate it in a counterclockwise direction (as viewed in Fig. 2). However, when the toe 20d is moved to a position to the left of dead cen- 2. In a, writing instrument, an elongate, hollow holder having a. lengthwise bore opening at its front end, a writing unit mounted within and reciprocable lengthwise of said holder, said unit ter and the h'ead I9 bears against the arcuate edge 40 having a writing point at its forward end, spring portion J20h, the plunger assembly 30 exerts a force on the cam 20 in such plane and thus does not tend to rotate the cam. When, however, the cam 20 is rotated to a position. to the left of dead center, the plunger assembly 30 exerts a 45 force on the cam 20 tending to rotate it in a| clockwise direction.

Thus it will be seen that by reason of the location of pivot 2|, and the sh'ape of the, cam 20,

the cam 20 is self-locking in the position in which 50 xit is shown in Fig. 3 and, accordingly, is eective to hold the writing point in its propelled position until lever arm 22 is intentionally moved back to the position in which it is shown in Fig. 2.

ably mounted in said holder and having a writing point at its forward end adapted to be projected and retracted through the adjacent for- Cam 20 is so formed that when it is in the posi- 55 ward end of said holder. a pocket clip element.

tion ofFig. 2 it serves as a lever to transmit the force of spring |4 to the tip end 22a of lever arm 22, thus producing a considerable gripping pressure between said tip end and the outside means pivotally mounting said clip element on said holder for manual movement between active clipping position and inactive position, and actuating means operatively interposed between said surface of the holder, which pressure is such as clip element and said Unit 101' Projecting Said to enable lever arm 22 to function as a. pocket clip when in the position of Fig. 2. Since this pressure does not depend upon the resiliency of lever arm 22, as in the usual pocket clip, said lever arm can be of more rugged construction d5 than the usual pocket clip.

As will be self-evident, cam 20 and lever a 22 constitute, jointly, a form of lever mechanism' which may correctly be denominated, more speunit upon movement of said clip element into inactive position and retracting-sald unit upon movement of saidclip element into active clipping position.

4. A writing instrument comprising a holder having an open forward end,A a writing unit slidably mounted in said holder and having a writing point adapted to be projected and retracted through' the adjacent open end of said holder. a

cically, as a cam-and-lever mechanism. More- -recess in said holder, a pocket clip element, means over, it will be observed th'at the behavior of cam 20 is that of a simple lever during a part of its rotation.

In rotating lever arm 22 from the position of pivotally mounting said clip element for manual movement between an active clipping position projecting from said holder and inactive position retracted within said recess, and actuating means Fig. 3 to that of Fig. 2 there is an inherent tend- 'I5 Operatively interposed between said 611D element and said unit for projecting said unit upon movetion exterior thereof, manually operable means i for actuating said cam including a pocket clip element, mounted for manual movement between active clipping and inactive positions. and means for retracting said `unit whereby to move said writing point into said holder when said clip element is manually moved toward active position. I 6. In a writing instrument, an elongate, hollow holder having a lengthwise bore opening at its front end. a writing unit mounted within and reciprocable lengthwise of said holder, said unit having a, writing point at its forward end, a cam within said holder for propelling said unit whereby to propel said writing point from a retracted position within the holder to an alternate position exterior thereof, a. manually operable lever connected with said cam for operating the same, said lever extending to the outside of said holder, and means for retracting said unit whereby to move said writing point into said holder.

- A 6. element having a writing point at its forward end, and actuating means for reciprocating said unit whereby to retract said writing point through the front end of said bore toa position within said holder and, alternately. to propel said writing point through the front end of said bore to a writing position exterior of saidholder, said acv tuating means including a manually operable pocket clip element fulcrumed within said holder and projecting outwardly of th'e holder from its fulcrum, said clip 'element being so formed that, when said writing point is retracted, it lies generally parallel to said holder inactive clipping position, and means actuated by said clip element operative to propel said element forwardly when said clip element is rotatedout of the above-defined position toward inactive position.

10.l In a writing instrument, an elongate, hol-v mounted in said h'older at the rear of said unit and operative upon rotation in one direction to 7. In a writing'instrument, an elongate, hollow holder having a lengthwise bore opening at its front end, a writing unit mounted within and reciprocable lengthwise of said holder, said unit having a writing point at its forward end, spring means continuously urging said unit backwardly in said. holder whereby to retract said writing point into said bore, a rotatable cam mounted in said holder andl operative upon rotation'to propel said unit forwardly wherebyto move said writing point from its retracted positionl to a writing position exterior of said holder, said cam being rotatable past a. dead center position whereby it is operative to lock said unit in its forwardmost position, and a manually operable lever connected to said cam for rotating the same and projecting out of said holder to render it accessible for manual operation.

l 8. In a writing instrument, an elongate, hollow holder having a lengthwise bore opening at its front end, a writing unit mounted within and reciprocable lengthwise of said holder, said unit having a writing point at its forward end, and actuating means for reciprocating said unit whereby to retract said writing point through the front end of said bore to a position within said holder and, alternately, to propel said writing point through the front end of said bore to a writing position exterior of said holder, said actuating means including a manually operable lever arm fulcrumed within said holder and project# ing outwardly of the holder from its fulcrum, said lever arm being so formed and mounted that, when said writing pointV is retracted, said lever arm lies generally parallel to said holder with its free end extending forwardly and means actuated by said lever arm operative to propel said unit forwardly when said lever arm is rotated out of the above-defined position.

9. In a writing instrument, an elongate, hollow holder having a lengthwise bore opening at its front end, a writing unit mounted within and reciprocable lengthwise of said holder, said propel said unit forwardly whereby to move said writing point from its retracted position to a writing position exterior of said holder and to lock said unit in its forwardmost position, and a lever arm. connected to said cam and projecting therefrom to exterior of said holder for manually actuating said cam. said lever arm being so formed in said position, functions in conjunction with, p l

said holder as a pocket clip.

11. In a writing instrument, an elongate hollow holder having a lengthwise bore opening at its front end, a writing unit mounted within and reciprocable lengthwise ofsaid holder, said unit having a writing point at its forward end, a spring continuously urging said unit backwardly in said holder whereby to retract said writing point into said bore, a slot formed in and extending lengthwise of said holder and situated at the rear of said unit, a, cam disposed in said slot in driving engagement with the back end of said unit and rotatable about an axis extending normally to the longitudinalaxis of said holder, a. lever arm s connected to said cam and extending outwardly of the greater part thereof into said holder when said lever armis rotated.

12. In a writing instrument, an elongate, hollow holder having a lengthwise bore opening at its front end, a writing unit mounted within and l reciprocable lengthwise of said holder, said unit having a writing point at its forward end, spring means continuously urging said unit backwardly in said holder whereby to retract said writing a manually operable camfor propelling ysaid unit point into said bore, and-lever mechanism forwardly, and dashpot means for damping the upon rotation to propel said unit forwardly whereby to move said writing point from its retracted position to a second position exterior of said holder, a lever arm connected with said cam and extending therefrom to the exterior of said holder, said lever arm being operative to rotate said cam and being so formed that, when said unit is in its retracted position, said lever arm lies closely adjacent and generally parallel to said holder, and means within said holder operative to yieldingly cushion the retraction of said unit.

14. A writing instrument comprising a holder having an open forward end, a writing unit slidably mounted ,in said holder and having a writing point at its forward end adapted to be projected and retracted through the adjacent forward end of said holder, resilient retracting-means vconstantly urging said unit toward retracted position, and actuating means for projecting said unit inciuding a pocket clip element, means mounting said clip element for manual rotation between active clipping positionand inactive position, and means actuated by movement of said clip element toward inactive position for projecting said unit, said retracting means and said actuating means being active to hold said clip element releasably in active or inactive positions respectively.

15. A writing instrument comprising a holder having an open forward end, a writing unit slidably mounted in said holder and having a writing point at its forward end adapted to be projected and retracted through the adjacent forward end of said holder, resilient retracting means constantly urging said unit toward retracted position, and actuating means for projecting said unit including an' actuating lever pivotally mounted relatively to said holder, and driving means operatively interposed between said lever and said unit and having adead center position whereby 8 upon rotation of said lever in one direction. said unit is projected and upon rotation of said lever in the opposite direction, said unit is released for movement by said retracting means into retracted position, and said retracting means and said driving means are active to hold said unit releasably in projected or retracted position, respectively. 16. A writing instrument comprising a. holder having an open forward end, a writing unit slidably mounted 1n said holder and having a writing point at its forward end adapted to be projected and retracted through the adjacent forward end of said holder and means for projecting and retracting said unit including spring means for moving said unit in one direction, a pivotally mounted cam for moving said unit in the opposite direction against the action of said spring means, and manually operable means for rocking said cam in one direction to move said unit against the action of said spring means and in the opposite direction to permit said spring means to move said unit in said first direction.

17. A writing instrument comprising a, holder having an open forward end, a writing unit slidably mounted in said holder and having a writing point at its forward end adapted to be projected and retracted through the adjacent forward end of the holder, a pocketl clip element, means pivotally mounting said clip element on said holder for manual movement between active clipping position, and means operatively interposed between said clip element and said unit for projecting said unit when said clip is moved into inactive position and for retracting said unit when said clip element is moved into active position "and including a spring resiliently urging said unit toward retracted position and operative when said clip element is in active position to resiliently maintain said clip element in such position.

ROBERT W. RANDOLPH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENT 'Patent No. 2,427,068.,

v Certificate of Correction i ROBERT W. RANDOLPH A It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above September 9,1947.

numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Column 6, line 72, claim 11, after the Word rotated and before the perlod insert to propel said unfit; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that thevsame may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Oiflce.

Signed and sealedthis 2d day of December, A.. D. 1947,

THOMAS F. MURPHY,

Assistant 'vammisoner ofl Patents, 

